‘Dark Hearts’ and ‘Women at War’ Highlight Collaborations Between French Broadcasters and Streamers

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Netflix has set Xavier Gens’ (“Gangs of London”) untitled Paris-set genre movie starring Bérénice Bejo (“The Artist“) and Nassim Lyes (“Overdose”) as its next French film original. Set in the Summer of 2024, the film unfolds in Paris which is hosting the World Triathlon Championships on the Seine for the first time. Sophia, a brilliant scientist, learns from Mika, a young environmental activist, that a large shark is swimming deep in the river. To avoid a bloodbath at the heart of the city, they have no choice but to join forces with Adil, the Seine river police commander. Bejo and Lyes star in the film opposite Léa Léviant. The film is produced by Let Me Be and is slated for a launch on Netflix in 2024.

The topic on everyone’s mind. Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss‘ affair was a shock to Vanderpump Rules viewers — but the cast was seemingly onto the couple for a while.

Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss’ months-long affair may not have been exposed until March, but one unsuspecting person was on to them: Ken Todd.In a sneak peek for next week’s new episode of Vanderpump Rules, Lisa Vanderpump and Katie Maloney are making sandwiches in the kitchen at Villa Rosa when Lisa’s husband, Ken, drops a bomb.«I can’t believe that Tom Sandoval had Raquel over when Ariana’s away, in the jacuzzi as well.»«I know. I know,» Lisa responds.«And to stay the night,» Ken continues. «I couldn’t believe that.»Prior to Ken’s reveal, Lisa learned of the sleepover from Raquel after she shows up an hour and a half late to her shift at SUR.«Hi, I’m sorry.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Pulsar Content has acquired “Niki,” a film about the famous French-American artist Niki de Saint-Phalle, for international sales. The Paris-based banner will introduce the period project to buyers at the Cannes market with exclusive first stills. “Niki” marks the feature debut of popular French actor Céline Sallette and stars Charlotte Le Bon (“The Walk” “Saint-Laurent”) as de Saint-Phalle. Le Bon recently made her feature debut with “Falcon Lake” — which bowed at Cannes last year — and previously starred in Robert Zemeckis’s “The Walk,” as well as Terry George’s “The Promise” and Jalil Lespert’s “Saint-Laurent.” Le Bon stars in “Niki” opposite Damien Bonnard (“Les Misérables“).

Didn’t age well? Tom Sandoval blew off Bravo’s questions about his close bond with Raquel Leviss — as the couple secretly had an affair.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Leo Maidenberg’s Paris-based company Place du Marché Productions is developing a slate of French and international films and TV series with acclaimed talents, including Daphna Levin, the creator of the Israeli series “Euphoria,” as well as Sarah Kaminsky (“Raid Dingue”) and Leïla Sy (“Banlieusards”). Maidenberg, who launched Place du Marché in 2018 after a career in diplomacy and made his producing debut with Caroline Fourest’s politically charged action film “Sisters in Arms,” has teamed with Kim Younes at Elvie Productions on a pair of high concept Israeli series. The first title produced by the two banners is “The Truth,” a police thriller series co-written and directed by Levin, whose credits also include the original Israeli series “In Therapy.” Set in Tel Aviv, “The Truth” opens on the day of the final verdict for the most controversial murder case in Israel, 10 years after the incident which took place in a high school gym. That same day, a new murder happens in identical circumstances. Juvenile inspector Rachel Zohar, a student at the high school at the time of the first murder, must revisit her trauma to solve the case. Aurit Zamir (“Babysitter”) co-wrote the series with Levin.

Scandoval is slowly unraveling right before our eyes on Vanderpump Rules.

Scheana Shay revealed what really happened during that Raquel Leviss fight as she chatted to Andy Cohen on Wednesday’s “Watch What Happens Live”.

Scandoval is slowly starting to come to light on Vanderpump Rules.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent A flamboyant man who was once a sales clerk, singer, actor, sports impresario, business mogul and government minister, Bernard Tapie led a rollercoaster life wilder than most fictional characters depicted in pop culture, even those created by Martin Scorsese. No wonder that it took a decade for Tristan Seguela and Olivier Demangel to create and pen “Tapie,” a Netflix original series charting the swaggering man’s epic rise, from his blue-collar origins to his glorious days as a wealthy businessman and president of one of France’s biggest soccer clubs, Olympique de Marseille. The limited series tells intimate parts of his life, including his relationship with loved ones and business partners, as well as some of his setbacks and legal problems. Tapie died in 2021.

One observer’s take. Some Vanderpump Rules viewers thought Tom Sandoval was jealous when he saw Raquel Leviss kiss Tom Schwartz, but Lala Kent believes something very different was going through his mind.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent In a bid to showcase the utility of NFT’s in cinema, the team behind Mounia Meddour’s (“Papicha”) Rome-premiering film “Houria” is launching a limited impact NFT collection. Meddour’s follow up to her Cesar-winning feature debut “Papicha,” “Houria” is still playing in theaters in France and was recently boarded by “CODA” Star Troy Kotsur who is now executive producer on the movie. Kotsur made history last year as the first Deaf man to take home an acting award at the Oscars.  The initiative, which is being engineered by the film’s producers Ink Connection and High Sea, as well as the banners MADworld and Lumiere, will allow for the creation of a series of NFT’s focusing on “Houria”‘s central themes — sign language and dance. Powered by blockchain technology, a portion of the NFT proceeds will be donated to the Paris-based non-profit org Femmes Sourdes Citoyennes et Solidaires (United Deaf Women Citizens).  

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent French director Catherine Corsini was meant to be the seventh female director in competition at the 72nd edition of Cannes with her film “Le Retour” (The Return). But her competition slot is on hold for now after news broke about several alleged inappropriate incidents during filming. The night before the press conference on April 13, Cannes chief Thierry Fremaux confirmed to the director that she would have a competition slot, but shortly before the start of the announcement, the festival’s administration board decided to hold off on including the title as part of the lineup. The delay came after the board discovered that Corsini was allegedly being accused of harassment by crew members, while other members of the crew had been allegedly been accused of inappropriate acts against two female actors, according to French reports. Fremaux told Variety the “administration board wished to gather more information about the situation around the film before taking a decision on whether to include the film in its Official Selection.”

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Netflix has swooped on “Vortex,” the event drama-fantasy series which recently launched on France Televisions and garnered stellar ratings. The limited series will be available on Netflix in 190 countries starting June 2. The mini-series was produced by Quad Drama, the banner behind “Women at War” and “The Bonfire of Destiny” — a pair of highly successful shows which were jointly commissioned by Netflix and TF1. Set in 2025, the show stars Sisley as Ludovic, the police captain in the French city of Brest who lost the love of his life, Melanie, 27 years prior in a tragic accident. 

 alum Jax Taylor believes Tom Schwartz and Katie Maloney would still be married if Tom Sandoval wasn’t in the picture.The 43-year-old reality star made the confession during episode 1 of his and wife Brittany Cartwright’s three-episode show on Peacock’s feature, which premiered on Thursday, April 13. «I think he had a lot to do with why they got divorced,» Taylor said. «I would like to think they would still be together if it weren’t for Sandoval.»He added, «As much as Katie drives me nuts, I see her point.»Cartwright agreed, saying, «Oh, yeah.»Katie and Tom originally wed in 2016 in a televised ceremony after five years of dating.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Cannes Film Festival’s longtime director Thierry Fremaux sat down with Variety following the announcement of this year’s lineup, which includes a bevy of star-studded period movies, including Martin Scorsese’s highly anticipated “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Karim Aïnouz’s “Firebrand” and Jonathan Glazer’s “Zone of Interest.” Along with a raft of politically-minded films, there’s also a record six movies directed by female helmers in competition, including newcomers like Senegalese direcotr Ramata-Toulaye Sy’s feature debut “Banel et Adama.” Fremaux said his only regret this year is to miss out on “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie,” but he’s keeping high hopes to convince Scorsese to vie for a second Palme d’Or 47 years after winning his first with “Taxi Driver.” He also revealed that as many as two or three movies are expected to be added to the competition next week, after Directors’ Fortnight and Critics’ Week announce their respective lineups.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Apple and Canal+ have signed a landmark deal that will bring Apple TV+ to all Canal+ subscribers in France, along with some other European territories. The deal is different from the aggregation agreements that Canal+ has in place with other streamers such as Disney+ and Netflix, whose offers are being accessible as part of the French pay TV operator’s bundle. Under the pact, Apple TV+ will be available at no extra cost to Canal+ subs from April 20. Canal+ customers can seamlessly and easily access the films and series of Apple TV+ directly on their existing set-top box — with no separate app or subscription necessary. This is a multi-territory agreement for France, French speaking-Switzerland, Czech Republic and Slovakia. 

McKinley Franklin author Just when it seemed like the plethora of drama surrounding Season 10 of the Bravo reality show “Vanderpump Rules” couldn’t get any more robust, fans have been proven wrong once again: “Vanderpump Rules” alumni Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright are officially returning to the Bravo universe with exclusive “Watch With” specials on Peacock. TMZ first reported that “Vanderpump Rules” stars and real-life couple Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix split after Sandoval’s affair with fellow co-star Raquel Leviss. Since that March 3 report, all eyes have been on the reality TV show based around Lisa Vanderpump’s restaurants in West Hollywood, with ratings soaring higher than ever. 

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent French actor Gerard Depardieu, who’s already indicted on rape and sexual assault charges in connection to a 2018 case, is now being accused of sexual misconduct by 13 women in an investigative report published by Mediapart. The accusations were made by female actors, make-up artists and production staff, some of whom spoke on the basis of anonymity, and allegedly occurred during the filming of 11 films released between 2004 and 2022. Mediapart said “one actress has just given her account to the French justice system.” None of these 13 women have taken legal action against Depardieu, according to a statement provided to Variety by the Paris prosecutor’s office.

Pumping the breaks. Tom Sandoval claims he and Raquel Leviss have taken a step back in their relationship — and aren’t dating — after their affair made headlines.